7 Benefits of Drinking Mint Tea
on Apr 06, 2024
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Fresh and delicious, mint tea has many health benefits for the body. Learn how it can support digestion, hydration, immunity, and more.
Table of Contents
What Is Mint Tea?
Mint tea is made by steeping peppermint, spearmint, or both in hot water. This makes a light brown tea with minty and fresh flavors.
RELATED: How to Make Peppermint Tea Properly
Peppermint is a plant from Europe and the Middle East. It’s a cross between spearmint and wintermint. Spearmint is native to Europe and related to peppermint.
Since peppermint and spearmint are free of caffeine, the tea is caffeine-free. It’s also packed with beneficial compounds.
Some mint tea contain green tea or black tea, which makes the drink caffeinated. Don’t assume all mint teas are made with just mint.
My Peppermint Tea Pick
7 Mint Tea Health Benefits
1. Improves Digestion
Mint tea is one of the best drinks for digestion. It contains menthol, a compound with antispasmodic properties. This means it relaxes the gastrointestinal tract, making it good for relieving bloating, gas, nausea, and diarrhea.
Menthol also has anti-inflammatory effects, which can protect the intestinal tract and gut bacteria. Otherwise, inflammation can cause digestive issues.
Warm mint tea is especially soothing for digestion. If you have a stomach ache, the heat can relax your digestive muscles and provide relief.
2. Increases Hydration
Drinking plain water isn’t the only way to stay hydrated. Herbal teas, including mint tea, provide fluids too. This is important for controlling your body temperature, supporting healthy digestion, and removing waste from the body.
Mint even has some electrolytes, including magnesium, calcium, and potassium. These are minerals that help move water into cells and keep the body hydrated.
To boost the hydrating effect of mint tea even more, add lemon juice to your drink. Lemon juice also contains electrolytes like magnesium and potassium.
3. Contains No Caffeine
As an herbal tea, mint tea is naturally free of caffeine. This means you can enjoy it any time of the day, even before bed, and it won’t disrupt your sleep.
If you’re sensitive to caffeine, you might have jitters or a fast heart rate after drinking caffeinated tea. Mint tea is a great choice if you can’t drink a lot of caffeine.
4. Reduces Oxidative Stress
Oxidative stress happens when dangerous molecules, called free radicals, damage healthy cells. This can increase the risk of disease, including brain disorders, heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes, and more.
You can control oxidative stress by drinking antioxidant-rich teas, such as mint tea. Antioxidants are compounds that make free radicals less harmful, which protects your cells.
Examples of antioxidants in mint tea include carotenes and vitamin C. It also contains flavonoids, a group of powerful antioxidants that are so good for the body.
5. Relieves Coughing
The next time you have a cough, sip on mint tea. The menthol in mint has a cooling sensation, which can make your throat feel better. Plus, the relaxing effect of menthol can calm your airways and reduce coughing.
Mint is also an expectorant, which means it can loosen up phlegm. This will make it easier to cough out and help you feel less congested.
Hot mint tea is especially good for coughing, as the warm liquid will loosen up phlegm too. For extra benefits, add lemon and honey to mint tea to soothe throat.
6. Improves Immunity
As mint tea decreases oxidative stress and inflammation, it prevents you from getting sick. This is crucial for a healthy immune system.
What’s more, mint tea contains vitamin C, an essential nutrient for immune function. Your immune cells need vitamin C to properly find and kill bad germs.
The hydrating effects of mint tea contribute to immunity too. Water brings nutrients to your cells and protects your tissues, which improves your overall health.
7. Relieves Menstrual Cramps
Be sure to stock mint tea in your kitchen if you get a period every month. The drink’s pain-relieving effects can be helpful for period cramps. Specifically, menthol relaxes your muscles, which typically contract during your period and cause pain.
If you get digestive issues during your period, mint tea can help too. That’s because it calms the digestive tract and relieves stomach pain.
Even smelling mint tea will be beneficial for period cramps. The smell of menthol has pain-relieving properties, especially when the mint tea is hot.
